Talented Australian defender Kelea Iongi and exciting young midcourter Parris Petera round out the Te Wānanga o Raukawa Pulse playing roster for next year’s ANZ Premiership.
Curtailed by injury, exciting young shooting talent Khiarna Williams is set to reignite her career in Wellington with Te Wānanga o Raukawa Pulse for the 2024 ANZ Premiership netball league.
A strong contributing force in Netball Central Zone’s success over the past seven years, Anna Andrews-Tasola will step into a new role as head coach of Te Wānanga o Raukawa Pulse in 2024.
Maintaining their composure in the cauldron of Finals Series netball, the Robinhood Stars have booked their place in the ANZ Premiership Grand Final.
Based in Wellington, the Pulse were formed in 2007 and represent the Netball Central Zone which embodies Hawke’s Bay, Manawatū-Whanganui, Taranaki and Wellington Regions. The Central Zone has 13 Netball Centres.
Following their merger from two former National Bank Cup teams, the Capital Shakers and the Western Flyers, the Pulse subsequently became founder members of the new trans-Tasman competition, the ANZ Championship which heralded the introduction of the semi-professional era in 2008.
When that league ended in 2016, they have since represented Netball Central in the ANZ Premiership which started in 2017.
Singapore head coach Kate Carpenter was appointed the Pulse’s first coach with Frances Solia becoming the team’s first player and captain.
The Pulse hosted the first match of the semi-professional era but had little joy in those early years. That all changed with the introduction of the New Zealand standalone ANZ Premiership in 2017 when the Pulse established themselves as a dominant force.
Breaking their duck to win an elusive first-ever title at the elite level in 2019, the Pulse backed that up with further wins in 2020 and 2022, all under coach Yvette McCausland-Durie.
Yellow and black are the Pulse’s traditional colours but they also play in an alternative green strip, designed by their principal partners Te Wānanga o Raukawa.
The Pulse’s home venues are TSB Arena, Wellington, Te Rauparaha in Porirua, and Fly Palmy Arena in Palmerston North.